Smart warehouse opens in China

Over 100 self-charging robots have taken to the floor of China’s new smart warehouse.

Logistics firm Cainiao, part of the Alibaba Group, operates the facility in Huiyang, Guongdong. It will use the robots to take efficiency to a whole new level. The company, which offers same day and next day delivery services, provides services to 1000 regions in China.

The new robots, called automatic guided vehicles (AGVs), fire into action after an order is placed via the Tmall website, Alibaba’s B2C platform. The AGVs quickly identify the shelf containing the parcel and give it to a warehouse clerk who then selects the one ordered by the customer.

Instead of a clerk walking 27,924 steps around a warehouse daily – the average – it is now only 2,563. The overall efficiency has increased threefold thanks to the AGVs.

Sensors ensure the robots don’t bump into each other and when they are running low on energy they automatically head to a recharging point.